Airplane crash-lands into Hudson River; all aboard reported safe - CNN.com Airplane crash-lands into Hudson River; all aboard reported safe Story Highlights NEW: Flight's pilot, C.B. Sullenberger, emerges as hero of "miracle on the Hudson" All 155 passengers and crew aboard US Airways Flight 1549 alive, FAA says President says he is inspired by skill, heroism of flight crew, rescue teams Flight was headed from New York to Charlotte, North Carolina TIMELINE NEW YORK (CNN) -- A US Airways plane with 155 people on board ditched into a chilly Hudson River on Thursday, apparently after striking at least one bird upon takeoff from New York's LaGuardia Airport, according to officials and passengers. iReporter Julie Pukelis used a camera and a telescope to get this view of the scene in the river. more photos » Everyone on board was accounted for and alive, officials said. About 15 people were being treated at hospitals and others were being evaluated at triage centers. Flight 1549, headed to Charlotte, North Carolina, was airborne less than three minutes, according to FAA spokeswoman Laura Brown.

The pilot radioed to air traffic controllers that he had experienced a bird strike and declared an emergency, a New Jersey State Police source said. "I think a lot of people started praying and just collecting themselves," said passenger Fred Berretta. "It was quite stunning." He said he was expecting the plane to flip over and break apart, but it did not. "It was a great landing," Berretta said. Air traffic controllers at LaGuardia saw the plane clear the George Washington Bridge by less than 900 feet before gliding into the water about 3:31 p.m., an aviation source told CNN. iReport.com: Are you there? Send images Don't Miss Statement from US Airways Web site Witness Ben Vonklemperer said he watched the plane from the 25th floor of an office building. "If someone's going to land a plane in the water, this seemed the best possible way to do it," Vonklemperer said. "The way they hit it was very gradual. A very slow contact with the water." As the situation began to settle Thursday evening, the flight's pilot, Chesley B.

"Sully" Sullenberger, emerged as a hero, with praise being heaped on him by passengers, officials and aviation experts. "I don't think there's enough praise to go around for someone who does something like this. This is something you really can't prepare for," said former Delta pilot Denny Walsh. "You really don't practice water landings in commercial airplanes. Just the sheer expertise he demonstrated is amazing." US Airways CEO Doug Parker said it would be premature to speculate about the cause of the accident until the National Transportation Safety Board , which is sending a team to the site, completed an investigation. A source familiar with the situation, however, told CNN the pilot reported a double bird strike, but it was unclear whether that meant birds in both engines or two birds in one engine. The pilot initially said he needed to go back, and air traffic controllers started to give him clearance to do so, but the pilot said he wanted to head to Teterboro, New Jersey, because it was closer. That was the last transmission from the pilot, the source said. Passenger Alberto Panero said that within a few minutes after takeoff, he heard a loud bang and smelled smoke.

Watch passenger say he heard a loud bang » "That's when we knew we were going down and into the water. We just hit, and somehow the plane stayed afloat and we were able to get on the raft. It's just incredible right now that everybody's still alive." Passenger Jeff Kolodjay of Norwalk, Connecticut, said he was sitting in seat 22A, near one of the engines. "The captain came on and said, 'Look, we're going down. Brace for impact.' Everyone looked at each other and we said our prayers. I said about five Hail Marys," said Kolodjay, who was headed to Charlotte to play golf. "The plane started filling with water pretty quick," he said. "It was scary. There was a lady with her baby on my left-hand shoulder, and she was crawling over the seats." Watch footage of plane in water » Police, fire and Coast Guard boats, along with commercial ferries, were quickly on the scene as passengers lined up on slightly submerged safety chutes. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said later Thursday that the plane was tied to a pier at Battery Park City in lower Manhattan. As night fell, Coast Guard and FDNY boats remained at the scene.

President Bush commended those involved in the rescue. "Laura and I are inspired by the skill and heroism of the flight crew as well as the dedication and selflessness of the emergency responders and volunteers who rescued passengers from the icy waters of the Hudson," he said. Bloomberg also commended the pilot for not leaving the plane until he had checked to make sure everyone had been been evacuated. "It would appear that the pilot did a masterful job of landing the plane in the river and then making sure that everybody got out," Bloomberg said. "I had a long conversation with the pilot," Bloomberg said. "He walked the plane twice after everybody else was off, and tried to verify that there was nobody else on board, and assures us there were not." "There is a heroic pilot," said Gov. David Paterson. "We have had a miracle on 34th Street, I believe we now have a miracle on the Hudson." The temperature in New York was 20 degrees about the time of the crash off Manhattan's west side. See map of crash site » Dr. Gabriel Wilson, associated medical director of the emergency room at Roosevelt Hospital, said 55 survivors were checked out and cleared to leave from the scene.

Those being treated at hospitals included a husband and wife with hypothermia at Roosevelt Hospital, as well as a flight attendant with a leg fracture, hospital spokeswoman Michelle Stiles said. Since 1975, five large jetliners have had major accidents in which bird strikes played a role, according to the Web site of Bird Strike Committee USA, a volunteer group dedicated to reducing the frequency and severity of the strikes. More than 56,000 bird strikes were reported to the FAA from 1998 to 2004, according to the group's Web site. People who believe they may have had relatives on the flight may call US Airways at 1-800-679-8215 within the United States, the airline said. All Safe as US Airways Plane Crashes Into Hudson River in New York - The New York Times The New York Times N.Y. / Region |Pilot Is Hailed After Jetliner’s Icy Plunge Search Continue reading the main story Photo The partly submerged Airbus A320 floated along a pier in Battery Park City on Thursday night.

Credit Robert Stolarik for The New York Times A US Airways jetliner with 155 people aboard lost power in both engines, possibly from striking birds , after taking off from La Guardia Airport on Thursday afternoon. The pilot ditched in the icy Hudson River and all on board were rescued by a flotilla of converging ferries and emergency boats, the authorities said. What might have been a catastrophe in New York — one that evoked the feel if not the scale of the Sept. 11 attack — was averted by a pilot’s quick thinking and deft maneuvers, and by the nearness of rescue boats, a combination that witnesses and officials called miraculous. As stunned witnesses watched from high-rise buildings on both banks, the Airbus A320, which had risen to 3,200 feet over the Bronx and banked left, came downriver, its fuselage lower than many apartment terraces and windows, in a carefully executed touchdown shortly after 3:30 p.m. that sent up huge plumes of water at midstream, between West 48th Street in Manhattan and Weehawken, N.J. On board, the pilot, Chesley B.

Sullenberger III, 57, unable to get back to La Guardia, had made a command decision to avoid densely populated areas and try for the Hudson, and had warned the 150 passengers to brace for a hard landing. Most had their heads down as the jetliner slammed into the water, nose slightly up, just three minutes after takeoff on what was to be a flight to Charlotte, N.C. Continue reading the main story Many on board and watching from the shores were shocked that the aircraft did not sink immediately. Instead, it floated, twisting and drifting south in strong currents, as three New York Waterway commuter ferries moved in. Moments later, terrified passengers began swarming out the emergency exits into brutally cold air and onto the submerged wings of the bobbing jetliner, which began taking in water. Advertisement Continue reading the main story As the first ferry nudged up alongside, witnesses said, some passengers were able to leap onto the decks. Others were helped aboard by ferry crews. Soon, a small armada of police boats, fireboats, tugboats and Coast Guard craft converged on the scene, and some of them snubbed up to keep the jetliner afloat.

Helicopters brought wet-suited police divers, who dropped into the water to help with the rescues. Over the next hour, as a captivated city watched continuous television reports and the Hudson turned from gold to silver in the gathering winter twilight, all of the passengers, including at least one baby, and both pilots and all three flight attendants, were transferred to the rescue boats — a feat that unfolded as the white-and-blue jetliner continued to drift south. When all were out, the pilot walked up and down the aisle twice to make sure the plane was empty, officials said. Brought ashore on both sides of the river, the survivors were taken to hospitals in Manhattan and New Jersey, mostly for treatment of exposure to the brutal cold: 18 degrees in the air, about 35 degrees in the water that many had stood in on the wings up to their waists. Photo Still, most of them walked ashore, some grim with fright and shivering with cold, wrapped in borrowed coats. But others were smiling, and a few were ready to give interviews to mobs of reporters and television cameras.

Some described their survival as a miracle, a sentiment repeated later by city and state officials; others gave harrowing accounts of an ordeal whose outcome few might have imagined in such a crisis. Even the aircraft was saved for examination by investigators — towed down the Hudson and tied up at Battery Park City. In the glare of floodlights, the top of its fuselage, part of a wing and the blue-and-red tail fin jutted out of the water, but its US Airways logo and many of its windows were submerged. “We’ve had a miracle on 34th Street,” Gov. David A. Paterson said at a late-afternoon news conference in Manhattan. “I believe now we’ve had a miracle on the Hudson. This pilot, somehow, without any engines, was somehow able to land this plane, and perhaps without any injuries to the passengers. This is a potential tragedy that may have become one of the most magnificent days in the history of New York City agencies.” Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg said that there had been few injuries and that the pilot had done “a masterful job.” Advertisement Continue reading the main story W.

Douglas Parker, chairman and chief executive of US Airways, and officials of the Federal Aviation Administration said that Flight 1549 had taken off from La Guardia at 3:26 p.m., bound for Charlotte. It headed north, across the East River and over the Bronx on a route that would involve a sweeping left turn to head south. But both engines lost power about a minute into the flight. The National Transportation Safety Board and state and local agencies are to investigate the cause of the crash, which could take months, but early indications were that the plane’s engines had shut down after having ingested a flock of birds — variously described as geese or gulls. It was not clear where the birds were encountered. Please verify you're not a robot by clicking the box. Invalid email address. Please re-enter. You must select a newsletter to subscribe to. Sign Up Privacy Policy The pilot radioed air traffic controllers on Long Island that his plane had sustained a “double bird strike.” Without power, returning to the airport was out of the question, aviation experts said.

He saw a small airport in the distance, apparently at Teterboro, N.J., but decided to head down the Hudson and make a water landing, a rare event that is mentioned in the safety instructions given by flight crews to all passengers on every flight. Aviation experts said such a maneuver is tricky. An angle of descent that is too steep could break off the wings and send the aircraft to the bottom. Witnesses in high-rise buildings on both sides of the river described a gradual descent that appeared to be carefully controlled, almost as if the choppy surface of the Hudson were a paved tarmac. Susan Obel, a retiree who lives on West 70th Street and Amsterdam Avenue in a 20th-floor apartment, saw the plane flying amazingly low. “When you see a plane somewhere that it isn’t supposed to be, you get that eerie feeling,” she said.

“I didn’t think it was a terrorist, but I did worry.” On the plane, passengers heard the pilot say on the intercom, “Brace for impact.” One passenger, Elizabeth McHugh, 64, of Charlotte, seated on the aisle near the rear, said flight attendants shouted more instructions: feet flat on the floor, heads down, cover your heads. “I prayed and prayed and prayed,” she said. “Believe me, I prayed.” Photo Capt. C.B. "Sully" Sullenberger, the US Airways pilot who made an emergency landing in the Hudson River. Fulmer Duckworth, 41, who works in computer graphics for Bank of America — coincidentally, more than 20 of the passengers work for the bank, which is based in Charlotte — was in a meeting on the 29th floor of a building at 42nd Street and Avenue of the Americas when he saw the plane hit the water. “It made this huge, gigantic splash, and I actually thought it was a boat crash at first,” he said.

“It didn’t occur to me that it was a plane in the water.” Neil Lasher, 62, a consultant for Sony Music Publishing who lives in a 27th-floor apartment near the shore in Guttenberg, N.J., watched the plane go down. Advertisement “As soon as the plane hit the water,” he said, “I could see the New York Waterway ferries from New York York and the Jersey side, within a minute, heading toward the airplane.” The aircraft began to spin counterclockwise in the water and to drift south with the current. “As soon as we hit, we all jolted frontward and sideways, and then the water started coming in around my feet,” Ms. McHugh said. She got up and was pushed along the aisle and out an exit, then slid down an inflated slide into a life raft . One of the passengers who scrambled out onto the wing was Jeff Kolodjay, 31, who had been in Seat 22A in the rear. He said that after the emergency doors were opened, the plane began to take on water. In what he described as “organized chaos,” the passengers, all wearing life vests, “just walked through the water” toward the exits.

“We were just looking to be calm, and walking a straight line,” he said. Dozens of survivors were taken to St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center and St. Vincent’s Hospital in Manhattan. Jim Mandler, a spokesman at Roosevelt, said 10 patients, ranging from their early 30s to a woman about 85, had been treated, mainly for hypothermia. A flight attendant had suffered a lacerated leg. At the Weehawken ferry terminal, passengers shivered under blankets. A woman on a stretcher was carried from the terminal to an ambulance, a dazed look on her face. F.A.A. records showed that the aircraft involved in the crash had made at least two other emergency landings in this decade. On Feb. 2, 2002, pilots spotted flames in the left engine, and on June 23, 2003, indicators warned about problems with a landing gear. A later inspection showed it was a false warning. Tom Fox, president of New York Water Taxi, which sent boats to the scene in the Hudson but did not participate in the rescues, said the setting was, in a sense, ideal for a crash landing on water.

“It couldn’t have gone down in a better location because there are so many water-borne assets there,” he said. “The pilot must have been both talented and charmed.” Correction: January 20, 2009 Because of an editing error, an article on Friday about the crash-landing of a US Airways jet in the Hudson River misstated, in some editions, the timing of the most recent commercial jet crash in the United States. It took place last month in Denver, not 30 months ago in Lexington, Ky. Reporting was contributed by Michael Barbaro, Ken Belson, Viv Bernstein, Ralph Blumenthal, Cara Buckley, Russ Buettner, Glenn Collins, Jim Dwyer, Kareem Fahim, Kevin Flynn, Anemona Hartocollis, Christine Hauser, Javier C. Hernandez, C. J. Hughes, Tina Kelley, Corey Kilgannon, Patrick LaForge, Andrew W. Lehren, Patrick McGeehan, Jo Craven McGinty, Mick Meenan, Christine Negroni, Kenny Porpora, William K.

Rashbaum, Ray Rivera, Liz Robbins, Marc Santora, Nate Schweber, Kirk Semple, Joel Stonington, A. E. Velez, Mathew R. Warren and Margot Williams. A version of this article appears in print on , on Page A1 of the New York edition with the headline: All 155 Aboard Safe as Crippled Jet Crash-Lands in Hudson. Order Reprints | Today's Paper | Subscribe Commercial airplane crashes in Hudson River - NY Daily News US Airways airplane crashes in Hudson River - Hero pilot Chesley Sullenberger III saves all aboard Commercial airplane crashes in Hudson River All passengers were rescued from a USAirways plane that crash landed Thursday in the Hudson River. (Costanza for News) DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER Friday, January 16, 2009, 10:18 AM A former fighter pilot was hailed as the Hero of the Hudson Thursday night after he landed a stricken US Airways jet in the river - and made sure everybody got out alive. Pilot Chesley Sullenberger was still drying off when Mayor Bloomberg sang his praises.

"He did a masterful job of landing the plane in the river" and evacuating the passengers, Bloomberg said of the veteran pilot who lives near San Francisco. With water seeping into the plane - and all his 150 passengers and four other crew members safe - Sullenberger walked up and down the center aisle twice to make sure nobody was left before he, too, fled the jet, the mayor said. "He was the last one off the plane," Bloomberg said. Gov. Paterson also praised the ferry boat operators and rescue workers who rushed over as the plane bobbed in the 40-degree water and plucked the frigid, frightened passengers off the wings. "We've had a miracle on the Hudson," Paterson said. The Federal Aviation Administration said everybody was accounted for - a group that included at least one baby and a passenger who lost a relative in the Sept. 11 attacks. Passengers described the scene moments after the plane hit the water as "organized chaos." Yet, there was little panic as they helped each other reach the exit - allowing women and children to go first. "It's just incredible right now that everybody's still alive," passenger Alberto Panero said.

The New York Daily New published this on January 16, 2009. (New York Daily News) "It was intense, it was intense," added another passenger, Jeff Kolodjay. "You've got to give it to the pilot. He made a hell of a landing." It was just 20 degrees at the time and shivering survivors were rushed to Roosevelt Hospital and other medical centers to be treated for exposure. Most were expected to be released. Meanwhile, investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board were inspecting the 9-year-old Airbus A320, which was towed to Battery Park City and moored to a bulkhead just north of the World Financial Center. Sullenberger, a 57-year-old former Air Force fighter pilot and a 29-year veteran of US Airways, told air traffic controllers he hit a flock of geese and that it knocked out both of his engines. It appeared to be the first time in 45 years that a major aircraft crash-landed in the water - and every passenger on board made it out alive. Former Airbus executive George Hamlin said the pilot deserves a big thank you from the city.

"Ditching an aircraft is a significant accomplishment on the part of the pilot, as opposed to crashing one," he said. "There's no place for an airplane of that size to land in Manhattan." Bush offers praise President Bush, whose farewell address was overshadowed by the drama in New York, echoed that praise. "Laura and I are inspired by the skill and heroism of the flight crew as well as the dedication and selflessness of the emergency responders and volunteers who rescued passengers from the icy waters of the Hudson," Bush said. Flight 1549, bound for Charlotte, N.C., was scheduled to take off at 3:04 p.m. from LaGuardia Airport. Many of the passengers were Bank of America bankers heading home. The plane was on the tarmac for 22 minutes before it tookoff from runway 4 at 3:26 p.m., the FAA reported. Three minutes later, Sullenberger radioed an air traffic controller on Long Island and reported "a double bird strike" and that he was losing power fast, Doug Church of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association said. At that point, the plane was over Bergen County, N.J., too far from LaGuardia to turn back.

So the controller told Sullenberger to try landing at Teterboro Airport. "Let's do it," the pilot replied. As soon as he said the words Sullenberger realized the plane would never make it and headed for the river, clearing the George Washington Bridge by 1,000 feet. "We were aware he was going to try and land in the river," Church said. "We could follow him on the radar as he passed over the George Washington Bridge." Back in the cabin, the passengers knew they were in trouble. Chesley Sullenberger, III is being hailed as a hero after making the emergency landing. "Everyone started saying prayers," Kolodjay said. Then the intercom cracked and the pilot gave the order. "Brace for impact," he said. Seconds later, the jet with 155 passengers and crew members was down and a rescue operation was underway in the water off the Intrepid Sea-Air-Space Museum. In a city that's seen everything, hundreds braved the cold and watched the rescue in slack-jawed amazement from the shoreline. "It was just going down further and further and further," said Peter Chinchino, of Edgewater, N.J.

"I could not believe what I was seeing." Many witnesses said they thought a movie was being shot, not realizing a real-life drama was being played out. "I heard a boom and I saw a splash," said Larry Brunson, a car repairman for the LIRR who was at 12th Ave. and 40th St. when the plane went down. "People were grabbing on top of the plane and a wing as it sank." For others, the falling plane evoked horrible memories of the 9/11 attacks. "I saw a plane flying really, really low and I just thought, 'Not again,' " one visibly upset witness said. The feds said there was no evidence of terrorism. "There is no information at this time to indicate that this is a security-related incident," said Homeland Security press secretary Laura Keehner. Anyone finding luggage or other items possibly from US Airways Flight 1549 should call 311 and report it. Callers from outside the city are asked to call (212) NEW-YORK.

New York plane crash: 'Miracle on the Hudson' as 155 passengers survive - Telegraph USA New York plane crash: 'Miracle on the Hudson' as 155 passengers survive The crash-landing of a plane into the Hudson river - which avoided landing on New York city as a result, with no fatalities - was hailed as a "miracle". By James Quinn in New York 1:24AM GMT 16 Jan 2009 New York Governor David Paterson, speaking from the New York Waterways Ferry building where some of the rescued passengers were taken, said: "We've had a miracle on 34th Street before. I believe now we've had a miracle on the Hudson." The plane crashed at approximately 3.30pm local time (8.30pm GMT), having been in the air for only four minutes. Preliminary reports from the Federal Aviation Authority indicate it was hit by a flock of geese shortly after taking off from New York's La Guardia airport, where it was due to the make short flight to Charlotte, North Carolina.

All 155 passengers on board were rescued safely, with some suffering from minor cuts and injuries, and some from hypothermia. They were rescued by local ferries and New York police boats and divers, who took them to rescue stations on the New York and New Jersey banks of the river. Pilot Chesley B. Sullenberger – "Sully" to his friends - was hailed a hero by passengers and bystanders alike, not least for managing to down the plane flat in the freezing waters of the Hudson, rather than crash-landing into the city. Mr Sullenberger is understood to have walked up and down the plane twice after every passenger and crew member had disembarked to make sure that no-one was left onboard before exiting himself. Related Articles Pilot told passengers to 'brace for heavy landing' 15 Jan 2009 New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg commended the former US Air Force pilot, who has flown with US Airways for 29 years, for his bravery and skill.

Mr Bloomberg had also managed to grab a snatched conversation with Mr Sullenberger, who was continuing to discuss the incident with flight scene investigators: Mr Bloomberg said: "He was very careful in what he talked about and I think that's the sort of training you'd expect in a veteran pilot. They don't speculate. "The pilot certainly did a masterful job of landing and everybody worked together. It is terrible that it happened at all but if it was going to have to happen, this outcome is as good as you could ever hope and pray for." Although Mr Bloomberg would not speculate on the precise cause of the incident, he did rule out terrorism, something which the Federal Bureau of Investigation confirmed. Instead all signs pointed to the fact that the Airbus A320 hit a flock of birds, thought to be geese, after its initial ascent out of La Guardia, which lies to the north-east of New York city. The plane's captain at first considered landing at nearby Teterborough airport, in New Jersey, and also reverting to La Guardia, before deciding his only option was to land in the sub-zero waters of the Hudson, close to New York's West 50th street.

"This was the most perfect emergency landing I ever saw in my life," sanitation worker Danita Johnson told a local New York news channel, who had watched it from a nearby pier. "If you know you are facing a ditching, the crash-landing of an aircraft on water, it is crucial that you land the plane absolutely level," said David Learmount of Flight Global magazine. "You must not try to keep the plane airborne and if you land it too slowly you will drop out of the sky. It is quite clear that he got everything absolutely right." Passenger Jeff Kolodjay, who was sitting in seat 23A on his way to North Carolina for a golfing holiday, agreed. "About three or four minutes into the flight, I was sitting in 23A, and the left engine just blew. "Fire and flames coming out of it and I was looking right at it because I was sitting right there. " Mr Kolodjay, who said that people went silent and started praying when the captain told them brace for impact, hit his head on impact with the water, but said he was "fine." "You've got to give it to the pilot he made a hell of a landing," he added.

Some eyewitnesses admitted it could have been much worse, reminiscing about Flight 90 in 1984, when an Air Florida flight crashed into Washington DC's 14 Street Bridge immediately after take-off because of heavy snow, killing all but five of its 79 occupants. US Airways Flight 1549 was towed by tug-boats south down the Hudson, to the base of Manhattan, from where it will eventually be pulled out of the river to be inspected by flight safety investigators. A family assistance centre was set up at the Crowne Plaza at La Guardia airport for family members of those on board, with US Airways asking those seeking information on family to call a toll-free (in the US) number at 1-800-679-8215. BRAKING NEWS - PLANE CRASHES IN HUDSON RIVER -NEW YORK ON 01/15/2009 - YouTube BRAKING NEWS - PLANE CRASHES IN HUDSON RIVER -NEW YORK ON 01/15/2009 Want to watch this again later? Sign in to add this video to a playlist. Need to report the video?

Sign in to report inappropriate content. The interactive transcript could not be loaded. Loading... Rating is available when the video has been rented. This feature is not available right now. Please try again later. Uploaded on Jan 15, 2009 PLANE CRASHES IN NEAR HUDSON RIVER NEW YORK. ALL 150 PASSANGERS WERE ESCAPED. Category US Airways Flight 1549 - The New York Times The New York Times Supported by US Airways Flight 1549 News about US Airways Flight 1549, including commentary and archival articles published in The New York Times. More Updated: June 9, 2009 On Jan. 15, 2009, a US Airways jetliner with 155 people aboard flew into a flock of geese and lost power in both engines shortly after taking off from La Guardia Airport on its way to Charlotte, N.C. The pilot, Capt. Chesley B. Sullenberger III, splash-landed the plane in the icy Hudson River.

Ferries and rescue boats swarmed toward the plane from both banks of the river, and all on board were brought to shore safely in a dramatic episode that made Mr. Sullenberger a national hero to many, and entered the rescue of Flight 1549 into airline lore. Workers and others in high-rise buildings on both banks of the congested Hudson were transfixed as the A320 Airbus came downriver in mid-afternoon, its fuselage lower than many apartment terraces and windows, in a carefully executed touchdown that sent up huge plumes of water at midstream, between West 48th Street in Manhattan and Weehawken, N.J. What might have been a catastrophe was averted by a pilot's quick thinking and deft maneuvers, and by the nearness of rescue boats, a combination that witnesses and officials called miraculous. The aircraft struck the geese at 2,700 feet within 1 minute 37 seconds after takeoff.

At that point, according to transcripts from the air traffic control of that flight, Captain Sullenberger told the tower that "we lost thrust in both engines." He determined quickly that he could not return quickly enough to La Guardia or make it to Teterboro Airport in New Jersey for a safe landing. "The only option remaining in the metropolitan area that was long enough, wide enough and smooth enough to land was the Hudson River," he said. He warned the passengers to brace for a hard landing. Most had their heads down as the jetliner slammed into the water, nose slightly up, just three minutes after takeoff. The aircraft did not sink immediately. Instead, it floated, twisting and drifting south in strong currents, as three New York Waterway commuter ferries moved in. Moments later, terrified passengers began swarming out the emergency exits into cold January air and onto the submerged wings of the bobbing jetliner, which began taking in water. Soon, a small armada of police boats, fireboats, tugboats and Coast Guard craft converged on the scene, and some of them snubbed up to keep the jetliner afloat. Helicopters brought wet-suited police divers, who dropped into the water to help with the rescues.

All of the passengers, including at least one baby, and both pilots and all three flight attendants, were transferred to the rescue boats, even as the crippled white-and-blue jetliner continued to drift south. When all were out, officials said, Captain Sullenberger walked up and down the aisle twice to make sure the plane was empty. AP Passengers in an inflatable raft move away from an Airbus 320 US Airways. A US Airways jet landed in the Hudson River near Manhattan Thursday afternoon, plunging its 158 crew and passengers, including one infant, into freezing waters after apparently hitting a flock of geese. Miraculously, everyone aboard was able to escape, thanks to an incredible job by pilot Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger of Danville, Calif., who some witnesses said made a "three-point" landing on the water. Raw Video: The Crash Scene US Airways plane crashes into New York's Hudson River. (Published Thursday, Jan. 15, 2009) "It would appear that the pilot did a masterful job of landing the plane in the river and making sure everyone got out," said Mayor Michael Bloomberg after the crash.

"He was the last one up the aisle, and made sure no one was left behind him." Governor David Paterson added, "We've had a miracle on 34th Street, Now I believe we've had a miracle on the Hudson." The twin-engine plane was submerged in the icy waters up to the windows, and rescue crews had opened the door and were pulling passengers in yellow life vests from the cabin as the plane slowly sank. An armada of boats –– including at least half a dozen commuter ferries –– as well as firefighters and federal officials rushed to the scene before the Airbus A320 could be lost to the murky depths. Authorities say 58 of the 155 passengers and crew were taken to New Jersey after being pulled from the sinking plane. The rest were taken to New York City. The frigid touch-down was the first non-fatal jetliner emergency water landing in 50 years of commercial flight, according to the Wall Street Journal . The plane crashed near the USS Intrepid aircraft carrier museum, near 43rd Street, on Manhattan's West side five minutes after it took off at 3:26 p.m. from LaGuardia Airport, the FAA said.

It was later towed to a pier further downtown. "There were eyewitness reports the plane may have flown into a flock of birds," said Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Laura Brown. "Right now we don't have any indication this was anything other than an accident." An air traffic controllers union official said the pilot reported a "double bird strike" less than a minute after takeoff and was headed for an emergency landing in New Jersey when he ditched into the Hudson River. US Airways Flight 1549 was en route to Charlotte, N.C., and had 150 passengers and five crew members (two pilots and three flight attendants) aboard. Officials said there were only minor injuries. Passenger Jeff Kolodjay of Norwalk, Conn., said he heard an explosion two or three minutes into the flight. He looked out of the left side of the plane and could see one of the engines on fire. "The engine blew. There was fire everywhere and it smelled like gas," he said. "The captain said, 'Brace for impact because we're going down,'" Kolodjay said. He added, "It was intense. It was intense. You've got to give it to the pilot.

He made a hell of a landing." “Prepare for impact" was all that was said by the pilot before the craft landed in the river, according to passenger Alberto Panero in a phone interview with CNN's Wolf Blitzer. "Somehow the plane stayed afloat and we were all able to get on the raft," said Panero. "Some people were on the wings and had to wait there but most of the people were able to get on the raft." "I don't even know how to put it into words right now," he said. "I actually grabbed one of the seats, that was the first thing that came to my mind. Some people grabbed the inflatable one. Immediately there were folks coming to us and throwing life jackets to us and helping us get to safety." "There were a couple of people who took charge and started yelling for everyone to calm down," Panero said. "Once everyone realized we were going to be okay, they settled down." The extraordinary rescue effort was due in large part to the ferries who quickly came to the plane's aid. “We just started taking people from the wing and the inflatable rafts,” said Janis Krums who was riding on one of the first ferries to arrive and rescue the passengers.

“And we just started giving them clothes and keeping them warm … in less than six or seven minutes we just had five or six boats helping.” "I saw it hit the river," a caller who witnessed the crash told WNBC Thursday. "It just came crashing down into the river. I was wondering why it came down so low; there's no airport around here." Scores of people in the city's highrises could barely believe their eyes as the the dramatic landing took place just outside their windows. "I'm on the 27th floor of my building, sitting on my couch," a witness told WNBC. "I got up and said, 'Oh my God, they're gonna land in the river.' I watched the whole thing." "I saw what appeared to be a tail fin of a plane sticking out of the water," said Erica Schietinger, whose office windows at Chelsea Piers look out over the Hudson. "All the boats have sort of circled the area. ... I can't tell what's what at this point." US Airways Chairman and CEO Doug Parker made a statement from company headquarters in Phoenix before rushing to New York.

He said they would soon release the entire manifest of passengers, and anyone who was concerned that loved ones might have been on board should call 800-679-8215. Regarding the cause of the crash, Parker said "it's premature to speculate." Experts say that Canadian geese are one of a pilot's worst nightmares. A 4-pound bird exerts more than 6 tons of force if hit by a plane traveling 200 mph -- some geese weigh up to 15 pounds. A U.S. Air Force plane crashed during takeoff at Elmendorf Air Force Base in Alaska in 1995 after a collision with geese. Twenty-four people died. Birds caused another Air Force plane to crash during its approach to a runway in the Netherlands in 1996, killing 34 people. Joe Mazzone, a retired Delta Air Lines pilot, said it is not unusual for birds to strike planes. In fact, he said, when planes get ready to take off, if there are birds in the area, the tower will alert the crew.

In the rare cases in which birds get sucked into an engine, "they literally just choke out the engine and it quits," Mazzone said. Twenty-seven years ago this week, an Air Florida plane bound for Tampa crashed into the Potomac River after hitting a bridge just after takeoff from Washington National Airport. The crash on Jan. 13, 1982, killed 78 people including four people in their cars on the bridge. Five people on the plane survived. On Dec. 20, a Continental Airlines plane veered off a runway and slid into a snowy field at the Denver airport, injuring 38 people. That was the first major crash of a commercial airliner in the United States since Aug. 27, 2006, when 49 people were killed after a Comair jetliner mistakenly took off from the wrong runway in Lexington, Ky.

US Airways Plane Crash-Lands in New York City's Hudson River, Everyone Survives | Fox News US Airways Plane Crash-Lands in New York City's Hudson River, Everyone Survives Published January 16, 2009 Facebook 0 Twitter 0 Email Print NEW YORK – A US Airways jet crash-landed Thursday in the Hudson River between Manhattan and New Jersey after a flock of birds apparently struck its engines — but all 155 people on board are thought to have survived, and the pilot is being hailed as a hero. Passengers were sent fleeing into the icy, 35-degree waters when the Airbus 320 went down near 48th Street in Manhattan shortly after taking off from LaGuardia Airport. "We've had a 'Miracle on 34th Street' and now we have a miracle on the Hudson," said New York Gov. David Paterson. Click here to see photos. New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said the pilot told him he walked through the plane twice to make sure everyone was off before exiting the aircraft. The pilot of the plane was Chesley B. Sullenburger III, his daughter confirmed to FOXNews.com.

She declined to give additional details, but an official familiar with the accident told The Associated Press that the 57-year-old California resident is a former fighter pilot who runs a safety consulting firm in addition to flying commercial aircraft. Pilot in Hudson River Crash Flew Air Force Fighter Jets National Air Traffic Controllers Union spokesman Doug Church said the pilot reported a "double bird strike" less than a minute after takeoff. The pilot then said he spotted an airport below, in New Jersey. He first intended to make an emergency landing there but instead took the plane down in the river. "There were eyewitness reports the plane may have flown into a flock of birds," FAA spokeswoman Laura Brown said. "Right now we don't have any indication this was anything other than an accident." How Birds Can Down a Jet Airplane Doug Parker, chairman and chief executive officer of US Airways Group, would not speculate on what caused the incident but said at a news conference after the crash that the company will cooperate fully with investigators. As amazement turned to questions, a team of 20 National Transportation Safety Board investigators began looking into how Thursday's bizarre near-disaster happened.

Most of the passengers were held at the New York City ferry terminal at 42nd Street after the crash, though at least two were taken away on stretchers. The New York City Fire Department said 78 people were injured, but the extent of the injuries wasn't immediately known. They were taken to hospitals in New York and New Jersey. Click here to read more about the water landing. Flight 1549 had just taken off at 3:26 p.m. when it went down. The flight was carrying 150 passengers and five crew — two pilots and three flight attendants — and was heading to Charlotte, N.C. The plane was submerged in the icy waters up to the windows but remained completely intact. Rescue crews opened the door and pulled passengers in yellow life vests from the plane. Several boats — including commuter ferries — surrounded the plane. Many of the passengers were able to step off the plane and directly onto a rescue boat or wait for rescue on the wings, Bloomberg said. Passenger Fred Beretta said everyone on board was helping each other get out alive. "I think everyone was just stunned," Beretta told FOX News on The O'Reilly Factor.

Beretta, who was sitting on the left side of the aircraft, said he heard the engine sputter and then go quiet. "There was no panic on the plane," Beretta said. "The pilot made a gradual left turn and (we) were waiting and knew [the pilot] would say something. It seemed like a long time [till he spoke] but it probably wasn't. The plane was quiet except for a couple of emotional outbursts, but nothing major. The only words I recall [the pilot saying] were, 'Prepare for impact.'" "I looked out the window and thought, there is a good chance we are going to die. I thought about my family and started praying." Beretta described a calm scene as passengers told those near emergency exits to open them. Those on board safely exited to the wings. A team of investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board was arriving Thursday night in New York City, Bloomberg said, adding that the plane was still floating and tied up at a lower Manhattan dock. The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security said terrorism wasn't suspected. "There is no information at this time to indicate that this is a security-related incident," Homeland Security spokeswoman Laura Keehner said.

"We continue to closely monitor the situation which at present is focused on search and rescue." Witnesses said the plane's pilot appeared to guide the plane down. "I see a commercial airliner coming down, looking like it's landing right in the water," said Bob Read, who saw it from his office at the TV news magazine "Inside Edition." "This looked like a controlled descent." "I saw what appeared to be a tail fin of a plane sticking out of the water," Erica Schietinger, whose office windows at Chelsea Piers look out over the Hudson, said shortly after the crash. "All the boats have sort of circled the area." Those who believe they may have family members on board flight 1549 can call US Airways at 1-800-679-8215 within the United States. Miracle on the Hudson | Reuters.com Miracle on the Hudson 1 / 30 The left engine of the US Airways airplane that crash landed in the Hudson River last week is lifted out of the water in New York January 23, 2009.

REUTERS/Patrick Andrade 2 / 30 The left engine of the US Airways jetliner that crash landed in the Hudson River last week is inspected by NTSB (National Transportation Safety Board) officials after being lifted out of the water in New York January 23, 2009. REUTERS/Patrick Andrade 3 / 30 As workers on shore watch, a crane hoists the wreckage of the US Airways airplane that crashed in the Hudson River out of the icy river in New York, January 17, 2009. REUTERS/Ray Stubblebine 4 / 30 Emergency crew members work around the wreckage of the US Airways airplane that crashed in the Hudson River, as the tail fin and left wing stick out of the icy waters while awaiting it's removal, in New York January 17, 2009. REUTERS/Patrick Andrade 5 / 30 A crane looms over the submerged wreckage of US Airways flight 1549 as it prepares to lift the Airbus A320 from its makeshift mooring along a seawall in lower Manhattan, in New York, January 17, 2009.

REUTERS/Edouard H.R.Gluck/Pool 6 / 30 Passengers stand on the wings of a U.S. Airways plane after it landed in the Hudson River in New York, January 15, 2009. The jet with more than 150 people on board came down into the frigid Hudson River off Manhattan after hitting a flock of geese. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid 7 / 30 Passengers are rescued after a U.S. Airways plane landed in the Hudson River in New York January 15, 2009. REUTERS/Eric Thayer 8 / 30 Passengers are rescued after a U.S. Airways plane landed in the Hudson River in New York January 15, 2009. REUTERS/Eric Thayer 9 / 30 Passengers wait to be rescued after a U.S. Airways plane crashed into the Hudson River in New York January 15, 2009. REUTERS/Eric Thayer 10 / 30 Emergency personnel search for more passengers after a U.S.

Airways plane landed in the Hudson River in New York January 15, 2009. REUTERS/Eric Thayer 11 / 30 Passengers stand on the wings of a U.S. Airways plane as a ferry pulls up to it after it landed in the Hudson River in New York January 15, 2009. REUTERS/Gary Hershorn 12 / 30 Passengers are rescued after a U.S. Airways plane landed in the Hudson River in New York, January 15, 2009. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid 13 / 30 Emergency personnel search for passengers after a U.S. Airways plane landed in the Hudson River in New York, January 15, 2009. REUTERS/Eric Thayer 14 / 30 Divers swim beside a U.S. Airways plane after it landed in the Hudson River in New York January 15, 2009. REUTERS/Eric Thayer 15 / 30 An inflated life jacket floats in the water after a U.S.

Airways plane landed in the Hudson River in New York, January 15, 2009. REUTERS/Eric Thayer 16 / 30 A passenger is brought onto a boat after a U.S. Airways plane landed in the Hudson River in New York January 15, 2009. REUTERS/Eric Thayer 17 / 30 A passenger is transported by emergency personnel after a U.S. Airways plane landed in the Hudson River in New York January 15, 2009. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid 18 / 30 A passenger is transported by emergency personnel after a U.S. Airways plane landed in the Hudson River in New York, January 15, 2009. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid 19 / 30 An injured person is loaded into an ambulance near the scene of a U.S. Airways plane crash in the Hudson River in New York, January 15, 2009. REUTERS/Chip East 20 / 30 Rescue workers stand near the scene of a U.S.

Airways plane crash in the Hudson River in New York, January 15, 2009. REUTERS/Chip East 21 / 30 Rescue workers arrive near the scene of a U.S. Airways plane crash in the Hudson River in New York, January 15, 2009. REUTERS/Chip East 22 / 30 A fireman runs through a rescue boat as it heads out to a U.S. Airways plane that crashed into the Hudson River in New York, January 15, 2009. REUTERS/Eric Thayer 23 / 30 Rescue vessels surround a U.S. Airways plane after it crashed into the Hudson River in New York January 15, 2009. REUTERS/Eric Thayer 24 / 30 A passenger speaks with emergency personnel after a U.S. Airways plane landed in the Hudson River in New York, January 15, 2009.

REUTERS/Brendan McDermid 25 / 30 Life jackets float near the crash site of a US Airways plane which landed in the Hudson River in New York, January 15, 2009. REUTERS/Chip East 26 / 30 Jeff Kolodjay, a passenger on a U.S. Airways plane that crashed into the Hudson River, talks with the media after being rescued in New York, January 15, 2009. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid 27 / 30 New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (C) speaks at a news conference after a US Airways Airbus A320 airliner made an emergency landing in the Hudson River between Manhattan and New Jersey after taking off from New York's LaGuardia Airport, January 15, 2009. REUTERS/Mike Segar 28 / 30 A US Airways Airbus A-320 airliner floats down the Hudson River between Manhattan and New Jersey (back) after making an emergency landing in the river after taking off from New York's Laguardia Airport, January 15, 2009.

REUTERS/Mike Segar 29 / 30 A US Airways Airbus A-320 airliner floats down the Hudson River between Manhattan and New Jersey (back) after making an emergency landing in the river after taking off from New York's Laguardia Airport, January 15, 2009. REUTERS/Mike Segar 30 / 30 A US Airways airbus A320 plane lies in water after it splashed down in the Hudson River off Manhattan in New York January 15, 2009. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid Next Slideshow NEW Jan 17 Latest Plane Crash Hudson River New York City Water - YouTube NEW Jan 17 Latest Plane Crash Hudson River New York City Water Want to watch this again later? Sign in to add this video to a playlist. Need to report the video? Sign in to report inappropriate content. Rating is available when the video has been rented. This feature is not available right now. Please try again later. Uploaded on Jan 17, 2009 To play HQ add &fmt=18 at end of url.

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Question: In 2009, an aeroplane crash landed in which river in New York?
Answer: Hudson River